Johan Laidoner

Johan Laidoner (12 February 1884-13 March 1953) was commander-in-chief of the Estonian Army from 1918 to 1920 during the Estonian War of Independence, from 1924 to 1925, and 1934 to 1940.

Biography
Johan Laidoner was born on 12 February 1884 in Viiratsi, Governorate of Livonia, Russian Empire. He served with the Imperial Russian Army in World War I, and when Estonia became independent from Russia, he became commander of the First Estonian Division, rising to the rank of Major-General and establishing a military academy in 1919. Laidoner led the Estonian Army in the Estonian War of Independence against the Soviet Union, and he served as commander-in-chief several times during the Interwar Years. On 17 June 1940, Laidoner was arrested after the Soviets conquered Estonia and was imprisoned in Siberia, dying in 1953 in Vladimir Central Prison in the USSR.